Why do we invite people to Church on Easter?

I was just asked an important question from a bright young pastor: “Why is Easter a week when we would expect that un-churched people would want to come to church?”

It is, in fact, a very good question with an answer that is not as easy as you might think. Let me rephrase it: “In a post-modern, increasingly post-Christian America, why would anyone think that Easter is a more important day to go to church than any other Sunday in the year?”

For Christians, of course, Easter is our Super-Bowl Sunday. Jesus died for our sins, and was resurrected for our salvation! And because HE experienced resurrection, we are going to, also.

For those who come from a Christian background or culture, this is the day they might be open to going to church with you. If a person who had dropped out of Church, but who still had a soft spot in their heart for Christianity, was invited to an Easter service, there might be something inside of them that said “I probably could go to Church on Easter”.

But even if a person has no cultural background or connection to Christianity, it makes sense to invite them for Easter. Though my church is continually pointing to the death and resurrection of Jesus as the central fact of our faith, Easter is our “High Holy Day” when everything we do focuses on this amazing reality—and we are very intentional to make sure that every person will be able to understand the clear and uncompromising message of the salvation and eternal life that Jesus secured for us through His death and resurrection.

Furthermore, this is not just a message that can be read in a book, but it comes alive when the presence of the Holy Spirit is evident within a worshipping family of believers. Christians have been transformed by Jesus’ death and resurrection, so when we get together to specifically celebrate that, it is something worth checking out.

In short, if someone is at all interested in experiencing what is most important about the Christian faith, Easter is the time when it is most clear.

So, on Easter we invite people because they may be culturally open to coming—and the Holy Spirit will regularly use open doors like that to engage people. More than that, we invite others because on Easter we have a great opportunity to say, “This message, presented in this community in the presence of this God, is what my faith is really about”.

And if we don’t ask people to join us because we think Easter is for Christians, then we’ve missed the point: Here we have the chance to welcome others into our unique celebration of the most important thing that has ever happened in human history in hopes that they, too, will welcome the risen Lord into their lives.